El Salvador
Why El Salvador’s Dreams for a Crypto Utopia Are Now on Hold
A coin-shaped crypto utopia with zero taxes, powered geothermally by a volcano and funded by bitcoin bonds—That’s what La Unión, a small region in southeastern El Salvador, will become if President Nayib Bukele’s ambitious plan comes to fruition. But after a stalled rollout of the country’s bitcoin bonds, some are skeptical of the plans.
Why El Salvador Postponed Its Bitcoin Bond
El Salvador’s finance minister announced that the country is postponing its $1 billion bitcoin bond offering, which reportedly aims to help fund the “Bitcoin City” project. “The Hash” team discusses El Salvador’s ongoing bitcoin experiment and the international criticism the Central American nation has received from entities like the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Bank of America: No Crypto Winter Given User Adoption, Developer Activity
Recent analysis from Bank of America indicated that amid increasing concerns of inflation and growing user adoption in the cryptocurrency space, a “crypto winter” is not likely to take place. “The Hash” discusses this thesis, looking at institutional adoption, the magnification of the NFT marketplace, and the use cases for crypto as seen in El Salvador, Canada, and now Ukraine.
El Salvador to Inaugurate Bitcoin-Funded Pet Hospital With Surplus Government Trust Fund
El Salvador will inaugurate a new public pet hospital, funded by a $4 million surplus in a government trust fund caused by bitcoin's rising value, according to President Nayib Bukele. "The Hash" crew questions whether this is the best-use case for the surplus bitcoin. "We're talking about $4 million, in a really poor country ... If you're trying to be an advertisement for bitcoin, go out there and help the people who badly need it," says co-host David Morris.
'OK Boomers': Nayib Bukele Responds to Bipartisan US Senate Proposal Raising Alarms Over El Salvador's Bitcoin Adoption
U.S. Sens. Jim Risch, Bob Menendez and Bill Cassidy proposed a new act that would require a State Department report on mitigating risks to the U.S. financial system from El Salvador's adoption of bitcoin as legal tender. The legislation quickly drew a sharp rebuke on Twitter from El Salvador President Nayib Bukele calling the senators "boomers." "The Hash" hosts dive into the history of Latin America and U.S. politics. The crew also discusses the essence of this legislation and how it's less about El Salvador and more about keeping the U.S. dollar the reserve currency.
El Salvador to Issue $1B Bitcoin Bond Between March 15-20
El Salvador's bitcoin bond is coming. Samson Mow, Chief Strategy Officer at Blockstream, tells "All About Bitcoin" that commitments are mainly coming from bitcoin whales and crypto hedge funds. He provides an update on bond issuers and the official launch date timeline.
CoinDesk TV Celebrates First Anniversary
From NFTs’ rise to fame on “Saturday Night Live” to dogecoin’s slew of celebrity endorsements to El Salvador adopting bitcoin as legal tender to BTC hitting new all-time highs, CoinDesk TV was there to cover it all. Take a look back at the first year in CoinDesk TV history.
